The Board granted service connection for radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities as secondary to a service-connected lumbar strain, but denied higher ratings for lumbar strain, left knee patellofemoral syndrome, and anxiety disorder, NOS.
The deciding factor: The decision was based on the evidence of record and the Veteran's failure to cooperate with scheduled VA examinations without good cause.
- Claimed conditions
- Radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, Radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, Lumbar strain, Left knee patellofemoral syndrome, Anxiety disorder, not otherwise specified (NOS)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 29, 2025
- Citation
- A25047801
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include a mood disorder and alcohol abuse disorder, secondary to the Veteran's service-connected disabilities. The other claims for increased ratings were denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for higher staged ratings and initial ratings in excess of 10 percent, 20 percent, and 10 percent for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, right lower extremity, and residual painful surgical scar, posterior trunk respectively, to correct a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation from July 7, 2017, but no earlier, to July 26, 2019, and he was granted basic eligibility for DEA benefits during the same period.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of October 1, 1973, for the award of service connection for a lumbar spine disability but remanded the issue of entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent prior to April 4, 2022, and in excess of 40 percent thereafter.
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